


KAD Murder

by Melbrook



Category: One Life to Live
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-09
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-12-13 10:54:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 7,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11758332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Melbrook/pseuds/Melbrook
Summary: Todd is accused of killing Marty and all the evidence points to his guilt, but he has no memory of killing her.





	1. Chapter 1

KAD Murder

I didn’t mean to kill her. I had been angry with her, I was always angry with her. Angry that I still loved her even though she hated me. Not that I didn’t deserve her hatred, I had certainly earned it over the years. Still, constantly seeing her around town, wanting her, but knowing that I could never have her drove me insane. I wanted her gone…I wanted her to disappear from my life, I even tricked Starr into signing a restraining order against her. I figured that without Hope and Cole, Marty would have no reason to stay in this town. 

I didn’t remember killing her, but I must have. My fingerprints were all over the knife, not to mention I had her blood all over my car, and all over my clothes when the police found me. They found me unconscious at the KAD house in Kevin’s old room laying in the same bed that had ruined my life, not to mention hers all those years ago. The only thing missing to condemn me was her body, that was nowhere to be found. I wanted to tell myself that she was still alive, but how could she be? Nobody could survive the nightmare that I must have inflicted on her. The room smelled like death and her blood was splattered across the walls, it had stained the carpet red…it was everywhere. There was no way that she survived. I just wished that I could remember what happened in the last hours that we spent together. 

The last thing that I remembered was knocking on her door, grinning like the Cheshire Cat, with the restraining order in my hand and then nothing. Why did I drink that bottle of vodka for liquid courage before heading out into the night? Maybe if I hadn’t, she’d still be alive, if nothing else, at least I would have the memory of what I had done. Remembering would be awful, I had enough bad memories when it came to her, but it had to better than not knowing whether or not I had killed the only woman that I have ever really loved. 

I stare at the haunting words “KAD Party Girl” written in her blood on the walls and I shudder and quickly turn my head from the haunting image. She was more than that to me in life…I hated the legacy that I had once given her, so why would I bring her back here to kill her? What the hell happened to cause the monster to become free from the chains? I thought I had been successful in killing him off for good, but looking at her blood on the walls was a reminder that he was still around, somewhere lurking underneath the surface. 

“What’s the matter Todd? Are you feeling sick with guilt from what you have done?” John asks as he glares at me. 

“I have the right to remain silent…and I’m not saying anything to you, without my lawyer,” I remind him.

“That’s what I figured you’d say. You’re a sociopath who wants to bask in the glory of your genius. Look around Todd, you’ve really outdone yourself. Let’s get you back to the station, Tea and Nora are waiting for us there,” John said as he takes me away from the KAD house.


	2. Chapter 2

“What have you done?” Tea bellowed as soon as we were left alone in the interrogation room. 

“I don’t know,” I whispered as I looked into her panic stricken eyes. 

“Where’s her body Todd? Maybe we can bargain for some kind of deal if we offered them Marty’s location.”

“Tea, I don’t know. I don’t remember killing her, but I must have right? Maybe I should just confess. If I killed her then I need to be punished.”

“You don’t remember?”

“I had a lot to drink last night, I must have blacked out.”

“What is the last thing that you remember?”

“I remember standing at her door, with the restraining order in my hand, and that’s it. That’s all I remember Tea. I don’t know how I ended up at the KAD house. I just don’t remember.”

“That’s just great Todd. Why couldn't you just leave Marty Saybrooke alone? I always knew that woman would be the death of you?”

“The death of me?” I repeated as I looked at her incredulously. 

“Alright…poor choice of words,” Tea admitted. “Why did you have to trick Starr into signing that restraining order? I told you it was a bad idea.”

“Honestly, I wanted her gone, but not like this, never like this. What should I do Tea?”

“Keep your mouth shut Todd. There will be no confession, when you don’t even remember what happened. I’ll find a way to get you out of this mess, I don’t know how yet, but I’ll come up with something…I always do.”

“Time’s up, your arraignment is scheduled for tomorrow morning,” Nora stated as she entered the room and handed a folder to Tea.

“What’s this?” Tea asked. 

“All the preliminary evidence that your client murdered Marty. I’m here to make you an offer. If you plead guilty to murder then I’ll recommend 30 years if you tell us where her body is.”

“My client can’t help you Nora, he’s innocent.”

“That’s why he was found covered in her blood,” Nora stated as she glared at me. 

“After all the ways that you’ve hurt her, the least that you owe her is a proper burial, but you’re not going to give her that are you?” Nora said addressing me for the first time. Her eyes were burning with hatred for me, but I could see the grief threatening to spill as her voice shook with the heartbreak and loss that we both had in common.

“We don’t need to take your deal Nora,” Tea spoke on my behalf. 

“Fine, we’ll go to trial and you’ll get life. There’s no time limit on my offer Todd. I hope that you think about all the ways that you’ve destroyed Marty’s life and return her to us so she can finally rest in the peace that you never gave her in life. It’s the least that you owe her,” Nora said as she walked out. 

“I’ll see you at your arraignment Todd, don’t do anything stupid,” Tea said as she headed out right behind Nora.

I was escorted to my cell and then left alone with my thoughts. Nora was right…Marty deserved peace, more than anything. I had to find a way to remember what I did with her body so that she could have a proper burial. I had an idea, it was risky, and it was stupid as Tea would say, but it needed to be done.


	3. Chapter 3

I had never seen a ghost. But like they say, there is a first time for everything. “Marty,” I whisper as she appears by my side in the cell. 

“Hello Todd,” she says as she smiles at me. 

“Why did I kill you?” I ask her as I reach out to touch her.

“Why do you think that you killed me?” She asks as she takes a step away from me. I sigh as I realize, that just like in life, I wouldn’t be able to touch her. 

“Come on Marty, just give me a hint,” I plead. 

“I’m not going to make this easy on you Todd. Besides, you already have the answers. You were there when it happened.”

“I don’t remember…where did I bury you?” I asked her. 

“Now that is the question…where am I Todd?” She echoed as her voice reverberated off of the cell walls. 

“What should I do?” I ask her for answers. 

“You already know what to do, but if you’re going to do it, you better hurry. The guards should be back any minute now,” she reminds me as she looks at the clock. 

“I’m sorry Marty,” I whisper as I bang my head against the wall over and over again until darkness overcame me. 

When I open my eyes again, I’m in the hospital just like I wanted. There’s no sign of Marty though and I feel the despair of her absence hitting me like a concrete wall all over again. 

“How are you feeling?” Ray Martinez asks me. 

It’s been twenty years since I’ve seen him. He was the one that helped banish the monster in the first place and now here he was, back in my life, like nothing had changed. “It’s been a long time.”

“Todd, how are you feeling?” Ray repeats himself.

“You haven’t changed…all these years and all you want to hear about is my feelings. Marty’s dead, how do you think I’m feeling?” I turn the question back on him as I smirk at him. 

“I know…is she the reason that you tried to kill yourself?” Ray asked. 

“I don’t want to talk about Marty.” I say as I turn my head away from him. 

“Talk to me Todd, You’re going to be here with me for the next 48 hours, maybe longer if I decide that you’re still a threat to yourself.”

“48 hours huh?”

That’s right Todd, so you may as well talk to me.”

“Why would you want anything to do with me? They say that I killed her, the only woman that I’ve ever loved. I was found with her precious blood all over me. Do you know where they found me? In hell at the KAD house,” I say as I start laughing hysterically.

“I don’t care what they say? What do you say? How do you feel?”

“I feel sick, sicker then I’ve ever felt in my entire life. I didn’t think that it could worse then the sickness that I felt with the spring fling nightmare, but I was wrong. I thought that you had cured me, I thought that we had banished the filthy disgusting monster, but we were wrong. He must have come back and killed her.

“You don’t remember?”

“No, I don’t remember…that’s why I’m here. I need her help to reach the sociopathic monster that exists somewhere inside of me. I need your help to remember what he did to Marty and why?”

“Did you attempt to kill yourself just so that you would be placed in my care?” 

“Well, nothing gets by you.”

“You could have died.”

“So, if I died then it’s exactly what I would deserve. Should we get started on recovering my missing memories?” I asked. 

“I’ll do my best to help you recover your memories tomorrow. Tonight you need to rest,” Ray stated as he left my room. 

“Where am I Todd?” I heard Marty’s haunting voice asking over and over again as I closed my eyes and tried to remember.


	4. Chapter 4

I felt as if I was just getting to sleep when I was jolted awake by the slamming of the door. I opened up my eyes and saw Tea and Blair standing there. Anger, pain, grief etched in their accusatory eyes as they looked at me. 

“What the hell were you thinking?” Blair asked. 

“I told you not to do anything stupid, and killing yourself is just about as stupid as it gets,” Tea added. 

“I don’t know why you’re so upset, you’re better off without me…both of you are.”

“You’re such a selfish Bastard. Did you even think of how devastated your kids would feel?People love you Todd, your kids love you. Vicki, Jessica, they love you. Tea and I have spent most of are adult lives loving you. Did you think of any of that before you slammed your head against the concrete wall?

“Blair-“

“No, you didn’t think of us…the only thing you thought about was Marty, because it’s always about her,” Blair continued. 

“I’m sorry,” I stated. 

“You need help and I hope to god that you get it,” Blair said as she walked out the door. 

“You can go too,” I said to Tea. 

“Blair’s had her say and now it’s my turn,” Tea stated as she slapped me across the face. 

“Tea, I calculated the timing of the guard change…I was never in any risk of dying. I just need to be here, I need help retrieving my missing memories. I need to remember killing Marty.”

“I need to talk to you about Marty, it’s part of the reason why I came today. I was reviewing the forensic evidence and I had a chat with Natalie. I think that somebody framed you, I don’t think that you killed Marty at all, hell I’m not even sure if she’s dead,” Tea explained. 

“What are you talking about?” I asked as I sat up. Was it possible that Marty was still alive? If so, where was she?

“Natalie and I had a very long conversation about the tests that were run on the blood that was found at the crime scene, and there’s something very peculiar about it.”

“Are you saying that it’s not Marty’s?” I asked. 

“It was confirmed to be Marty’s blood, but Natalie and I don’t think that it was taken at the same time. All of the blood that was found at the crime scene was tested, but only half of the blood contained levels of HCG, the pregnancy hormone.”

“Marty was pregnant? I thought that she had a miscarriage.”

“She did three months ago.”

“Then there’s a mistake with the blood work.”

“That’s what Natalie thought, so she ran the tests three times. It was the same every time, there is no doubt about it, half of the blood that was found in that room was taken from when she was pregnant. The other half was taken from Marty, either before she was pregnant or after she had already lost the child,” Tea explained. 

“Marty donated her blood quite regularly because of her rare blood type. Do you think that the person setting me up stole her blood from the blood bank?”

“Either that or…”

“Or what?” I asked. 

“It’s also possible that Marty’s the one that set you up. There was no body after all,” Tea stated.

“No, she wouldn't do that.”

“She has every reason to hate you, you took a restraining order against her, banning her from seeing Hope. She had means, motive and opportunity,” Tea stated. 

“It wasn’t her…the Marty Saybrooke that I know would never let her friends and family believe that she was dead just to get even with me.”

“If you say so, your arraignment has been postponed until you are released. Hopefully I’ll be able to have all the charges thrown out by then. Take care of yourself Todd and I’ll see you in a couple of days,”Tea said and then kissed me goodbye.


	5. Chapter 5

The air turned black all around me as I watched Ray’s pocket watch, swinging back and forth, back and forth until I was fully entranced. The room was completely dark and then I saw Marty appear in a bright, white light. She was dressed like an angel and for a minute I wondered if I was dead, but a guy like me wouldn't be in heaven if I was truly dead. 

“Where are you?” I hear Ray’s voice echoing against the walls of the darkness. 

“I’m with Marty, but I don’t know where I am,” I answer. 

“We are in your subconscious Todd, are you ready to remember?” Marty asks as she places her hand on the handle of a door that appears out of the fog. 

“What’s behind that door?” I ask. 

“There’s only one way to find out,” she answers as she slowly turns the door and walks in. 

I find myself in Marty’s living room as a spectator, watching another version of myself smiling and taunting as he pushes his way into Marty’s living room.”

“What an ass,” I comment as I look at that version of myself with disgust. 

“Shhh, just watch,” the angelic version of Marty whispers to me as she grabs my hand. 

_“What do you want Todd?” Marty asks as I barged into her living room determined to drive her out of my life for good._

_Marty’s voice is soft and quiet, so much so that I can barely hear her. I’m not used to seeing her this way. With me she’s usually so full of life, anger and fight. It’s been years since I’ve seen her as timid and afraid and I don’t like it one bit._

_I look around the room and see bottles of empty vodka bottles scattered around the room._

_“You’ve been drinking,” I point out as I pick up one of the bottles and hold it out to her as evidence._

_“So have you, so what’s your point?” She asks._

_“You can’t drink, not like this. You’re sick, this shit could kill you.”_

_“I have nothing left anyways. Patrick’s dead, Cole’s in prison, this baby is no more,” she whispers as she places her hand on her stomach as a tear streams down her face. “My life and love with John was nothing but lies and distractions. He never loved me and I…I wanted to love him but I couldn’t. There’s only been one man that I’ve ever loved.”_

_“Yes, we all know how much you loved Patrick,” I spat out with jealousy._

_“Patrick was just another lie, another distraction, no real love there,” Marty says shocking me._

_“What?”_

_“You didn’t come here to talk about Patrick,” Marty says as she grabs the restraining order out of my hand._

_“Don’t look at that…that was just a stupid mistake,” I say regretting my decision to take Hope away from her._

_It’s too late though, Marty is reading the restraining order. I expected to see anger in her eyes when she read those words, but instead I watched as the last of the light in her blue eyes faded into nothing._

_“You took Hope away from me,” she says, but she’s not angry…she’s not anything that I recognize and I’m scared that I won’t be able to take back what I set into motion._

_“I…I…I just thought after everything that happened with Hannah,” I lamely try to explain._

_“Hannah?” Marty asks as if she doesn't know what I’m talking about. She suddenly cries out in pain and she clutches her head and drops to her knees._

_“I…I’m sorry. I tricked Starr into signing that document, tomorrow, I’ll go to Starr and I’ll make this all go away. I…I…I don’t want to hurt you anymore,” I whisper as I kneel beside her, the full weight of guilt crushing me._

_Her cries turn into a crazed laughter as she looks at me. “Of course you do…Marty will always be the KAD party girl and you’ll always be a rapist who gets off on taking things from her,” she says talking about herself in the third person._

I look at the angelic version of Marty and she’s fading as the fog is slowly being lifted. “Where am I Todd?” She asks right before she completely vanishes into thin air.

“Wait…don’t go,” I whisper as I open my eyes and I’m back in the hospital room with Ray. “Why did you bring me back? There’s more for me to remember.”

“I’m sorry but you were getting too agitated, perhaps we can try again tomorrow after you’ve had a chance to rest,” Ray said as he administered a sedative to me. 

“I don’t need rest, I need to find out what happened to Marty,” I say as the darkness once again overtakes me.


	6. Chapter 6

I woke up with a start, something was in my room. The fog that the sedatives had left behind was still there trying to drag me back under, but I couldn’t go back to sleep, not now. It took everything I had to sit up and to focus my eyes on her standing in my doorway. 

“Vicki,” I whispered. 

“I told myself I wasn’t going to come, that you were beyond my help,” Vicki stated. 

“But here you are,” I pointed out the obvious. 

“Here I am, as much as I wanted to stay away, you’re still my brother and I still love you despite your sins,” Vicki admitted as she sat by my side. 

“I know that I’ve done a lot of unforgivable things to Marty, but I don’t think that I killed her.”

“You don’t remember?”

“I’m starting to, something was seriously wrong with Marty. Tea thinks that Marty might be framing me. It seemed impossible at first but now...”

“Natalie has told me about the discrepancies in the blood work and her theory that Marty might be framing you. I know Marty, she’s like a daughter to me and I know that you’ve given her plenty of reasons to hate you, but she wouldn’t do this to you.”

“You’re right Marty wouldn’t but what about an alter? If Marty had another personality, they could hate me enough to frame me.”

“You think that Marty has D.I.D?” Vicki asked. 

“I think that she might. Ray helped me to remember some things. I was at her house and I was talking to her. She got this bad headache, the kind that you used to get and then she was talking about herself in the third person. I’ve never seen her like that, and I’m scared that I’m right.”

“She has been under a lot of stress lately. Losing the baby the way that she did, Cole going to prison. Nora and I have tried to visit her, but she’s been distancing herself. I thought it was just depression, but maybe it’s something else entirely. What else did you remember?” Vicki asked. 

“Nothing yet, but I’m going to keep trying to remember until I know what happened to Marty,” I promised Vicki.”

“Todd, I think I know who is framing you?” Tea stayed as she walked in the room. 

“Do you have proof that Marty was behind this and where she might be now. I need to find her, she’s very sick,” I stated. 

“I don’t think that it was Marty that was behind framing you anymore. I called Statesville and Zach Rosen was given early parole a month ago, but he hasn’t reported to his parole officer and appears to have disappeared,” Tea explained as I shuddered at the thought.


	7. Chapter 7

If I’d known then what I know now, I never would have raped Marty. I had so many regrets when it came to her, so much evil that I had unleashed in that act of revenge. Not only did I rape her, but I sat idly by as Zach and Powell took their turns with her. I was responsible for all of it and if Zach had killed her to frame me, then I was responsible for her death, just as if I had killed her myself. 

“Zach did this,” I stated as I clenched my fists. 

“It’s possible, he blamed you and Marty for ruining his life. He could have killed her to frame you. Here is the information that I got from the warden and the parole officer, I haven’t had a chance to go through it, but hopefully there’s a clue that will tell us what happened,” Tea offered. 

“Do you need some help going through this information,” Vicki offered. 

“That would be great. Tea, I need you to talk to a judge and get me arraigned on bail. I need to find Zach and find out what he did to Marty,” I desperately pleaded. 

“I’ll do my best,” Tea said as she kissed my cheek and walked out of the room. 

“I don’t believe it,” Vicki gasped.

“What did you find?”

“One of the conditions for Zach getting early parole was that he see a court appointed psychiatrist every other day for an hour.”

“So...that seems standard to me, I had to see Ray when I was released.”

“Todd, it was Marty,” Vicki whispered. 

“What was Marty?”

“Marty was the court appointed therapist that was assigned to work with Zach.”

“That’s sick...what kind of judge would assign Marty to work with Zach.”

“According to this, it wasn’t the judge’s idea, it was Marty’s. Apparently she petitioned the judge and the parole board and was a big reason behind why they granted him early release,” Vicki said as she handed the document to Todd. 

“I don’t believe it...why would she do that? This doesn’t make any sense.”

“I hate to say this, or even think it, but do you think that Zach and Marty were working together to frame you?” Vicki asked. 

“I don’t know what to think. If Marty has D.I.D and another alter is in control, do you think that they would work with Zach?”

“The alter’s are created to protect the host personality, it’s possible that they would team up with Zach, despite what he did to her in the past, but only if that personality viewed you to be a bigger threat to Marty’s survival,” Vicki explained. 

“I was afraid of that. Vicki, I need you to do me a favor, I know that you’re not going to like it, but I need your help.”

“What would you like me to do?”

“I need you to distract Ray, while I break into his computer to find Marty’s medical file.”

“How do you know that there will be anything to find?”

“I don’t, it’s just a feeling that I have and I need to look. If Marty is sick then I hope that it’s documented somewhere. I need to know what I’m dealing with, because if she’s still alive and with Zach, then I need to find her and save her from any more damage. It’s the least that I owe her. Will you help me?”

“Let’s go before I change my mind,” Vicki said as we left my room in search of answers.


	8. Chapter 8

I knew that I had to hurry as I sat down at the computer, the computer was locked, but I managed to bypass the security and get in. I pulled up Marty’s medical file and quickly printed it and then I got rid of all traces that I was there before I disappeared. 

I texted Vicki that I had what I needed as I returned to my room. Marty had been seeing Doctor Levin and my suspicions that she was suffering from D.I.D was correct. 

“What did you find out?” Vicki asked as she entered my room. 

“Marty has split personality. According to this she has a personality Madison who is flirtatious, wild and uses sex, alcohol and drugs as a coping mechanism.”

“Sounds a lot like Nikki,” Vicki stated. 

“Yes, it also sounds a lot like the girl that I went to college with. I wonder if she was sick even back then,” I wonder aloud. 

“What else does it say?” Vicki asks after a few minutes of silence passes. 

“Oh god...it’s worse than I thought.”

“What?”

I hand her the file as I need to distance myself from the haunting truth that is staring me in the face. 

“The gatekeeper personality T.M, is believed to be short for Todd Manning. It is my speculation that this personality was created the night of the Spring Fling in which Miss Saybrooke was violently raped by Thomas Todd Manning, Zach Rosen and Powell Lord III. He is a very angry, vengeful, obsessive, dangerous personality that could be a threat,” Vicki read out loud. 

“Just stop, I can’t hear anymore,” I say. 

“I’m sorry Todd,” Vicki whispers. 

“So am I...I damaged her to the point where she created an alter based on the sadistic monster I was back then. I worked hard to change from that man, to kill the demon that plagued me. I thought I was successful in killing the monster. Turns out, that I didn’t kill him after all, I left him inside Marty, the night that I raped her.”

“Todd, good news, I managed to get you bail,” Tea said as she entered the room. “What happened? What did I miss?” Tea asked as she looked at us. 

“It turns out that you might be right after all. Zach and a version of Marty could be working together to frame me.”

“What are you going to do?” Tea asks. 

“I’m going to find Zach and I’m going to get him to tell me the truth before I kill him and then I’m going to save Marty from the sadistic bastard that I left her with,” I say as I walk out the door.


	9. Chapter 9

I headed home to change my clothes. Tea and Vicki wanted to stay with me. I told them that I wanted to be alone, truth was that I wanted to go looking for Zach. Tea and Vicki would insist on turning him into the police, but I wanted to make him suffer. 

“Starr, what are you doing here?” I asked as I entered my house and saw her holding a vase of red roses. 

“I found this sitting on your table. The flowers were all drenched in blood. Who’s blood is it Dad?” She asks as she hands me the vase.

I stare at them and I can see that she is right. The vase doesn’t have water, but instead is filled to the top with a red liquid that smelled like blood. I drop the vase and it shatters as it hits the ground, blood pouring out of it, staining my carpet.

“Tea told me that you got bail and I wanted to see you to ask you what happened between you and Marty. I didn’t want to believe it, but you killed her, didn’t you?” Starr asked as her eyes filled with tears. 

“I didn’t do this, Zach is framing me. Marty might even still be alive, she could be working with him to get revenge on me,” I tried to explain to Starr as she backed away from me in horror. 

“You’re sick and disgusting, I can’t believe that you are trying to blame this on her. She was Cole’s Mom, Hope’s grandma. I loved her and you took her away from us. I never want to see you again,” Starr said as she ran out the door. 

I wanted to follow her, but I knew that would only make things worse. She needed space and I wouldn’t be able to convince her of my innocence until I had proof. 

I was looking on my table for something that would tell me where the bloody roses had come from, when I received a text message. 

“Take a look in your freezer and you will find who you seek,” the message stated. Five seconds after I read it, the message disappeared. I couldn’t find it and there was no trace of who sent it to me.

I slowly and cautiously headed into the kitchen. Praying to god, that I wouldn’t find pieces of Marty in my freezer. I was about to open the door when there was a knock on the front door.

“What do you want? I’m busy,” I snapped out as I opened the door and saw John, Bo and Nora there. 

“This is a warrant to search your place Manning,” John stated as he shoved the paper in my hands and pushed his way inside. 

“What are you looking for?” I asked. 

“Zach Rosen, he was released last month and we have reason to believe that he has been staying in your guest house. Did the two of you work together to kill Marty?” Nora asked as she glared at me. 

“Zach’s not staying here. I hate him more than I’ve ever hated anyone. He did this, he is behind this whole thing Nora. He has Marty and if he has hurt her, then you better pray that you find him before I do, cause I’ll kill him,” I stated. 

“This warrant gives us permission to search your house and your guest house, let’s start with the guest house,” Bo stated as they headed across my property to the guest house. 

They went from room to room tearing it apart. They headed into the kitchen and opened the door to the industrial sized freezer. I gasped as I saw Zach Rosen hanging on a meat hook with a knife plunged deep in his heart.


	10. Chapter 10

“This isn’t what it looks like. I didn’t kill him, I don’t know how he ended up in my freezer,” I stammered as I take a step backwards. 

“What happened Manning? Did you kill Zach to keep him from telling us the truth about what you did to Marty?” John questioned me as he slammed me against the wall of the freezer. 

“That’s enough John,” Nora demanded as she pulled John away from me. 

“Please tell me that I can arrest this piece of shit for Rosen’s Murder,” John seethed as he glared at me. 

“Not yet, I need you to call the medical examiner and get him down here,” Nora ordered. 

“There’s no reception in here,” John complained as he waved his phone around. 

“Then go outside to call,” Nora stated. 

“Fine,” John grunted as he left. 

“I didn’t do this Nora. You have to listen to me, I know that you think that I killed Marty, but I didn’t. She helped Zach get released early, she’s very sick and I think that she was working with him to frame me. Please, I know that you hate me and you have every reason to. I know that I’ve lied to you about my innocence before, but I’m not lying now. I didn’t kill Marty and I didn’t kill Zach,” I pleaded with her. 

“I believe you Todd,” Nora said surprising me as she handed me a key and a letter. 

“What’s this?” I asked her. 

“I don’t have time to explain and John will be back any minute. Marty sent this the night that you supposedly killed her and she asked that I return it back to you when we found Zach,” Nora explained. 

“I don’t understand.”

“I know, but you will when you read the letter. You’re going to be arrested in twenty four hours for Zach’s Murder, just the way that you and Marty planned. In the meantime, I need you to go to Vicki’s cabin, that key unlocks a box that you and she hid in a loose floor board. Inside the box, you’ll find the answers about who is behind this and why. Go now, before John comes back,” Nora stated as she moved some floor boards that covered up the trap door. 

I had so many questions, but there wasn’t time to waste and the only way that Nora could have known about the trap door was if I had told her. “Thank you,” I whispered to Nora as I climbed through the Trap door that led to the underground tunnels. I made my way through the tunnels back to the main house and then climbed into my car and took off towards Vicki’s cabin.


	11. Chapter 11

I arrived at Vicki’s cabin and opened up the letter, hoping that it would contain some clue about where Marty was located. 

Todd, 

If you are reading this letter then the world believes that Marty is dead and that you have killed her. My name is Margaret and I am one of the gatekeepers to Marty’s fragmented Psyche. Marty is very fragile and very sick Todd. It is my job, my only purpose to protect her, but I made a mistake when she was in college. I’m not supposed to have feelings. Gatekeepers in general are very clinical and very detached. It works best that way so that we can clean up messes that the other personalities create. 

I was supposed to come out and clean up the mess that Madison made when she took you back to Marty’s house for a one night stand. Madison was just using you as a distraction, a way for Marty to get through the night, but something happened when I attempted to take over. For the first time in years Marty woke up, the two of you made love and then she begged for you to stay with her. I don’t know how it happened, but you and Marty have a very strong connection and you can reach her when other’s couldn’t. 

When you rejected her, she tried to withdraw, but something kept her with me. I was in control, but she was there as well. She couldn’t hide anymore so she did the next best thing and she became numb while she pushed her feelings of love onto me. I had been protecting Marty since she was four years old, and I had several decades of feeling nothing, but that all changed when you got Marty to wake up. For the first time in my life, I experienced love. I was in love with you and I felt the connection that Marty herself felt to you. I also felt the sting from the rejection when you left. 

I tried my best to push you away, but it was difficult, because our paths always seemed to cross. I tried to get Madison to come out to sleep with other men, to give Marty that distraction, but she couldn’t. I couldn’t remember how to transition like I had done so many times before. I wanted you gone, I wanted things to go back to the way that they used to be, so I kissed Zach in front of you. We got into this big argument at the Spring Fling and I wanted to forget, so I began to drink. I drank and I drank, I drank so much that I disappeared and left Marty alone. 

That night, well, we all know what happened that night. Marty was raped, I was supposed to protect her, but I couldn’t do that. I refused to come out, I told myself that you wouldn’t go through with it, that you would change your mind. Madison couldn’t come out because I was in charge of the transitions, but my feelings for you blinded me to what you were capable of. I left Marty alone, so she created another gatekeeper that would protect her. The hatred that you left in her that night, had to go somewhere and love and hatred can’t exist in the same space. I believe now, that’s why I was able to disappear. I represent Marty’s love for you and all of that hatred created another gatekeeper personality Todd Manning, or TM as we refer to him. TM hates you and is working with somebody to frame you for her murder. A month ago I came to you with my suspicions that TM was framing you. I also told you that TM was not the only creation that came from the Spring Fling. I told you that Marty became pregnant and was led to believe that the child died after birth until her aunt had died. When Kiki died Marty found out that Kiki had sold the baby to a couple in Llanview. 

When I came to you, you suggested that we let TM believe that he had succeeded in setting you up for murder. The night that I was “killed” you took something to erase your memory. Everything I have about the baby is locked in a box behind the floor boards underneath the safe. I hope that you will be able to solve this mystery and figure out who TM has been working with before it’s too late. 

Love always, 

Margaret 

I wiped the tears from my eyes and put away the letter. I needed to find Marty and the child that she conceived and get them the help that they needed.


	12. Chapter 12

I opened the floorboards behind the safe and found a birth certificate for baby girl Saybrooke and adoption papers. My daughter with Marty had been adopted by Sam and Laura O’Connor. O’Connor....the same last name as Starr’s nemesis Hannah. Was it possible that she was my daughter? Did she suspect that she was my daughter? Was that why she targeted Cole and Starr? 

I also found a card for a contractor Jason Smith. I called the number and Jason answered. 

“Hey Jason, my name is Todd Manning, I found your card and...”

“Mr. Manning, it’s so good to hear from you. Does your wife like the panic room that we put in your pool house?” Jason asked. 

“My wife loves it, I just called because my sister wanted a similar panic room in her house. Do you think that you could send me a copy of the blue prints?” I asked. 

“Yes, I can send that to you.”

“Great, my e-mail is Manning_Todd@yahoo.com,” I stated. 

“I will send it in a couple of minutes. I hope to hear from your sister soon,” Jason enthusiastically stated and then I ended the call. 

There was one last folded piece of paper in the floorboards. I pulled it out and recognized my handwriting.

“Todd, turn yourself into the police and confess to killing Zach and Marty. I have made arrangements with Judge Sanders, he will convict you and sentence you to death row. Hannah and TM will believe that you are in the clear. Bo will be in charge of your escort to Statesvile. Instead of going to Statesville, he will take you to your guest house where Marty will be found. Don’t screw this up, she’s counting on you.” 

As much as I wanted to use my blueprints to go to Marty, I needed to follow the plans that I had made with Margaret. I headed into the police station to give my confession.


	13. Chapter 13

Everything had gone according to my plan. I turned myself in to the police and confessed to killing Marty. I was sitting in the court room shackled as Judge Sanders sentenced me to death. 

“I’ll fight this Todd,” Tea said as she began to stand up. 

“Don’t bother, I don’t want to live in a world without Marty,” I told her as Bo came to get me to transport me. 

Bo didn’t take me to prison, but instead took me to my guest house. 

“Are you ready for this Manning?” he asks me as he places the wire on me. 

“I won’t let her down,” I say and then head into the guest house. 

I enter the room and then spot the book shelf that was hiding the panic room. I press the button on the inside of the book shelf and the doors opened up and I’m face to face with Marty.

She is chained to a bed by the ankles and she has a long, jagged wound marring her beautiful face. She has sweat beaded on her forehead, signs that she was running a fever. 

“You’re supposed to be in prison, what the hell are you doing here?” She asks me as she gives me a venomous stare, one that let’s me know that I am speaking with the monster that I left her with the night that I raped her. 

“You must be T.M.,” I state as I begin looking around the room for a key that would release her from the chains. I needed to think fast, find a way to convince Marty to come out so that I could release her and get her medical attention. 

“You’re not going to find the key. I knew better than to leave it here. Hannah has the only key and that treacherous bitch betrayed me when the verdict came in.”

“How?” I asked her. 

“She stabbed me and left me here to die and took off for the airport.”

“Stabbed,” I whisper as my hands drift to where her hands are rested on her stomach. It takes a while to notice, but there is blood behind her hands, camouflaged by her red shirt. 

I run to her side and place my hands over her wound. 

“Don’t you fucking touch her. I’d rather let her die, let all of us die, then watch you play hero to your precious party girl,” T.M. says as he pushes me to the ground. 

“A unit has been sent to the airport for Hannah and an ambulance is on it’s way,” Bo said as he entered the room. 

“I’m not going anywhere except to hell. I suspected that Margaret might have betrayed me when I started having blackouts. Gaps in my memory, missing hours and days that I couldn’t account for. I was hoping that I had convinced her and the rest of them that the only way that Marty could be saved was for Todd to die. I didn’t trust her so I wired Marty with a camera and discovered that she was working with Todd behind my back. I knew that Todd’s obsession would lead him here. There’s enough explosives in that safe to blow us all to hell and all I have to do is push this little button,” T.M said as he reached for the remote on the table. 

“Don’t do this Marty,” Bo pleaded. 

“Get the hell out of here Bo, unless you want to die, this is between Todd and I,” T.M. threatened. 

“I hope you can reach her Manning,” Bo whispered and then he left the panic room. 

“I was just going to push this button and kill us both, but it would be more entertaining for you to plead for your pathetic life. You have ten minutes to convince me, and Marty for that matter to forgive you and if you can’t then I get my revenge and we die,” T.M. stated as he looked at me.


End file.
